Dig Ventures

[Dinosaur]

Bankers? ....oh, no, maybe not, you'd need oodles of money for that

[pdurdin]

Rather than talk of failure (glass half empty) one should consider success... (glass half full)

This has created money/funding where none existed. therefore people can get involved more than before.

I didn't check Sponsume's terms before posting, or I would have phrased my questions differently. Unlike Kickstarter, projects on Sponsume that do not reach their goal retain access to the funds they have managed to raise (minus a 9% fee...ouch!).

I say this due to my own (small) crowd funding. people paid a tenner a day for the site and this then covered the costs for C14 dating - The more that was provided the better. but I budgeted on a wish for 1500 but an expectation of half that. as it happens we achieved the goal and thus success.

Good stuff, I highly approve! :face-approve:

Sometimes... money is not everything. And a skills bank - giving some free time to the community as a whole - can work as well as crowdfunding.

You're preaching to the converted here!

My questions for DigVentures still stand though, and I think any archaeological group weighing up the pros and cons of using Sponsume to help support a project of that scale would be interested in the answers...

[BAJR]

I do agree with that. I think this was a bold attept. but for me, I look to having eggs in many baskets. I know they pop in here, so hope they will answer the questions.

Perhaps BAJRites could create a skills bank ... hmmm ideas!

[Unitof1]

Infact the closest parallel might be the pro bonum system that many lawyers and
solicitors use....

......and thats what this lot seems interested to contribute

? Dr Francis Pryor, author and excavator of Flag Fen

? Professor Emeritus Martin Carver, Editor, Antiquity

? Professor Timothy Darvill, Bournemouth University

? Dr Will Fletcher, English Heritage inspector of ancient monuments for Norfolk

? Professor Vincent Gaffney, Chair in Landscape Archaeology and Geomatics, University of Birmingham

? Dr Benjamin Roberts, Curator, European Bronze Age, the British Museum

? Dr John Gater, Geophysicist, GSB Prospection and Time Team

? Gerard Twomey and Graeme Young, Bamburgh Research Project

? Julian Richards FSA, author and broadcaster

? Mark Knight, Senior Project Officer, Cambridge Archaeological Unit

? Clive Waddington, Managing Director, Archaeological Research Services Ltd

i presume that it is pro bona although the peterbourugh its a charity Vivacity script says they are engaged.

[Dinosaur]

Perhaps BAJRites could create a skills bank ... hmmm ideas!

Eeerm...you need some new BAJRites? or, clone Unit a few times? }

[DigVentures]

Hello All, and it's nice to see the continued interest in our project. And we agree with David - let's assume success, rather than failure. It's funny - when we first launched we were criticised in advance for raising too much - and now it would seem it's the opposite issue - but we're still on the firing line.

Of course we considered every angle of risk before undertaking this project, most particularly because we are working in partnership with a charity (Vivacity) and operating on a foundation of trust with the people who have invested in Flag Fen Lives. We could not anticipate what public appetite would be and how much we could raise on Sponsume, but we did plan around it for every conceivable scenario. With that said, we are confident that we will reach the goal.

At present we are 50% funded on Sponsume, with the deadline approaching - but that is not the whole story. This is the first time anyone has tried a project like this, and as such it's been a process of learning and adjustment - and that includes our partners, Vivacity. We have to accommodate their needs and respond to their abilities as the caretakers of Flag Fen. I'm not at liberty to discuss the particulars, but I will say that there are some very positive announcements coming this week and next, and we are really looking forward to sharing the new dimensions of the project as a result. The Peterborough area has finally woken up to the importance of the resource on their doorstep, and we look forward to welcoming the local offer on board.

Added to this is the fact that Flag Fen has just (within the last month) been scheduled by DCMS, and one can begin to appreciate the complexity of the bigger picture for us. We are feeling really confident about how it is all tying together - and yes, we will be presenting the project at the EAA in Helskinki, as well as at UCL as part of the Financing Archaeology workshop in May, and at York for the Archaeology Festival in June. We're as transparent and open to sharing as we can be - and very proud of the story that we can tell up to this point.

As to the question of whether or not we considered how our success/failure would affect other projects' ability to use crowdfunding, the answer is no. That is not our responsibility. We focused on the unique aspects of the business we wanted to build, our values and mission, and the needs of the amazing site that we will be working on. I would argue that a much bigger issue, and barrier to success for anyone wanting to use crowdfunding, is the amount of time and effort that goes into running an ethical and successful project. It's incredibly time-consuming, particularly when one is also holding down a fulltime job - as are all the members of DigVentures.

You can't just open up your online shop, take the money and go - and because of the visibility of our project (which we invited) we are ultra-aware of fulfillment being our biggest commitment. And we are in a similar position to David at the moment as far as being paid for our time - whilst donating time and volunteering services is a part of what we do, it cannot stay like this forever, for us as individuals or for archaeology as a discipline. For those who do volunteer as a result of personal beliefs, that's fantastic - but doing things for free shouldn't be a requirement in order to do what we do. So our advice to anyone considering crowdfunding would be to think about the time investment, and consider carefully what you offer and whether you can deliver that - which is about so much more than just putting someone in a hole on site.

All best
Lisa Westcott Wilkins, Managing Director, DigVentures

[Dinosaur]

I reakon if you can get money from whatever source to dig something that otherwise wouldn't get dug, good on you :face-approve:

[Dinosaur]

Please forget I suggested cloning Unit, what was I thinking? :0

[pdurdin]

And we agree with David - let's assume success, rather than failure.

While I completely agree that any money raised is a success, if your Sponsume project doesn't have ?25,000 pledged by the target date people will -- rightly or wrongly -- perceive that as a failure. I'm sure plenty will go on to ask "if you didn't reach the target, how can the project go ahead?"

At present we are 50% funded on Sponsume, with the deadline approaching - but that is not the whole story.

But that is all visitors to the website can see at present.

This is the first time anyone has tried a project like this...

Via Sponsume, perhaps. There have been plenty of other archaeological projects funded by paying volunteers/students and souvenirs (which is what the ?10-60 pledges amount to).

I'm not at liberty to discuss the particulars, but I will say that there are some very positive announcements coming this week and next...

Topping up the funds, I hope!

As to the question of whether or not we considered how our success/failure would affect other projects' ability to use crowdfunding, the answer is no.

From Brendon Wilkins' blog:
"A full evaluation of the public impact of the project and crowdfunding model will be undertaken with preliminary results presented at the EAA in Helsinki, (and peer review paper published soon after)."
But not the point I raised?


I'm not a professional or even qualified archaeologist. I'm precisely the very interested member of the public I'd expect you to be targeting, but there are far too many points that cause me to hesitate for me to cough up any cash or encourage anyone else to (and yes, even ten quid is a deal breaker for me).

[diggingthedirt]

This has (and continues to be!) a fascinating experiment – particularly the attitude and response of the self-appointed fault finders (see above).

Crowdfunding has been extremely successful in other creative industries, but I can’t find a single example (and believe me I’ve looked) where those projects have come under the type of criticism that ours has. Criticism no less, just for existing. This is what I see as a failure – a collective failure of the imagination, and left unchecked, it will consign us all to history. I take that as a personal challenge. Do you?

As far as crowdfunding success is concerned – try this one out for size. Financially, DigVentures is the most successful project to have ever run on Sponsume. I’ll repeat that for those struggling to keep up. Financially, we are the most successful project to have ever run on Sponsume (the largest crowdfunder hub in Europe). We are doing awesomely, fantastically, ridiculously well - but we need to raise more!!!! Our target is financially ambitious (about 20 grand more ambitious than the average crowdfunder) because that’s what this project needs. This is about raising money, but it’s also about raising awareness – generating a community interest in what we want to achieve. On that front too, we have some great stats… but still need to reach out to more.

Many crowdfunding projects are really only set up to link a small network of family and friends. We know that to succeed at this level, we have to reach beyond our first and second circle contacts and hit the mainstream. That’s why it’s so vital (and appreciated!) when people retweet or post our project on FB, or simply just tell a friend over a pint. It’s in your hands. Flag Fen Lives: Pass it on!

(with thanks to BAJR for the repost!)

http://digventures.com/

http://www.sponsume.com/project/digventu...en-lives-1